A Blog for The Thinking Muslim

Category: Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)

The differences of opinion that occurred among the Sahaabah (companions of Muhammad (pbuh)) were, for the most part, natural and unavoidable. A large portion of it was due to their different reasoning abilities that showed up in their various interpretations of Qur’aanic verses and hadeeths. There were other causes which led to differences during their time which later disappeared; for example, the wide distribution of hadeeths made it impossible for any individual Sahaabee to be aware of them all, and thus wrong decisions were bound to be made where information was lacking. Obviously, they cannot be blamed for these and…

The four guided principles of Sharia can effectively be used to explain the beauty of Islam to non-Muslims. Today Islamic Sharia is seen by non-Muslims as a strict way of life with little or no benefit for humanity. However, a brief explanation of the four principles of Sharia can be used to spread the beauty of Islam’s realistic justice and the fact that it was revealed by a loving God. Removal of Difficulty – Islamic law realizes that people may come across different circumstances in their lives which may make things difficult for them to act upon. Therefore, it allows…

Ijtihad in Islam refers to striving to come to the correct ruling on a particular issue based on a qualified individual’s understanding and knowledge of the sources of Islamic law. It is something which is reserved for those who meet the qualifications to engage in it, known as Mujtahids. The Mujtahid is required to have reached a certain level of knowledge by which he can correctly derive rulings from the Quran and Sunnah. Shaykh Uthyameen states, “The Mujtahid must have knowledge of the Islamic legal evidences and knowledge of the basic principles and scholarly views which, if he knows them,…